Looking for a trailhead in Yosemite that is away from crowds during the Labor Day weekend isn’t as hard as one might expect. One just has to be willing to drive a little further and be able to utilize basic topographic map skills to find a doable day hike that not many others know about. Chain Lakes in the extreme south eastern portion of Yosemite is a great example of just such a hike. Laura, my parents and myself took a gamble on making a longer drive than normal from Turlock to the Quartz Mountain Trailhead near Chiquito Lake on USFS Road 10. The forest road (Sky Ranch Road) out of Oakhurst is windy and full of potholes in the early section, but smoothes out nicely on the gravel and dirt portions. But 25 miles of 15-20mph road takes a while to finish, even in a Subaru.
The trail to Chain Lakes itself gains a tad over 1300’ in 5.7 miles to the Upper Chain Lake and gets comparatively light use compared to most trailheads in the park. The climb is fairly gradual over variably dusty, sandy and rocky trail, but there are several instances of climbing that are steeper than others. Luckily the trail is shaded nearly the entire which allows ample shady spots to catch one’s breath. The lakes themselves are gorgeous and each contains a great fishery. Lower Chain has amazing rainbows to 14”, the Middle Chain has a mix of brookies and ‘bows to 16-18”, while the Upper Chain is all brookie all the time, with the biggest one I caught near 11”.
The hike is a long one for a day hike, as we left the trailhead at noon and returned to the car guided by the last bit of alpenglow at 7:50pm. It’s a rewarding hike, but even better in October when NO ONE is around.